Found on EBay -- Polytechnic High School

A lot of 12 postcards, including Polytechnic High School, top left, and the library, bottom left, has been listed on EBay. Other postcards include Angels Flight, Bullock's downtown, the fountain at what is now Pershing Square, the alligator farm and the Plaza Church.  Bidding starts at $9.99.

Found on EBay -- Historic Venice

This 1908 postcard showing the bath house and lagoon in Venice has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $7.95.

Vice President Visits Disneyland

June 15, 1959: Vice President Nixon shakes hands with a spaceman at Disneyland, which opened six new attractions, including the Matterhorn, the monorail (capable of 80 mph!) and the submarine rides. Then the family goes to Knott's Berry Farm, where Walter Knott escorts them to a reserved room at the restaurant. No mention of whether they panned for gold!

Hey, it's a Chuck Hillinger byline! When it opened, the Matterhorn was the tallest structure in Orange County! Tricia and Julie Nixon cut the ribbon for the monorail!

The Pershing Square Mystery, Part II

Photograph by Boris Yaro / Los Angeles Times Dec., 11, 1975: "The Last Argument of Kings" cannon is at Travel Town. Note that the plaque is missing from the base.

I went to Travel Town on Sunday in search of the cannon presented to Los Angeles in 1899 and featured in Nuestro Pueblo. The short answer is that it's not at the park and nobody who was there Sunday knew what happened to it.  I'll be poking around to try to find it, but in the meantime, I did learn a few things: According to a Travel Town brochure, a master plan for the museum was adopted in 1987 specifying that objects that were unrelated to railroads and transportation in Los Angeles be deaccessioned. For example, the Korean War-era planes were transferred. An F7U-3 Cutlass went to the Navy museum in Pensacola, Fla., and a P2V-3W Neptune and F9F-2 Panther went to a museum near Fresno. All the firefighting vehicles were transferred to the firefighting museum in Hollywood. Obviously "The Last Argument of Kings" didn't fit with the museum's master plan. With luck, I'll be able to find out what became of it. Photograph by Julian Robinson / Los Angeles Times Two unidentified sailors en route to China pose with "The Last Argument of Kings" cannon, Aug. 23, 1947. Here's the plaque, which was removed by the time the cannon was installed at Travel Town.

Nuestro Pueblo: The Pershing Square Mystery

"The Last Argument of Kings"

Sept. 20, 1953: The cannon was moved to Travel Town in Griffith Park.

This simple post about a cannon at Pershing Square has become ridiculously complicated. All I want to know is what became of it! A longtime gathering place for malcontents and the homeless, the site has been known as the New Plaza, 6th Street Park, Central Park, St. Vincent's Park and Pershing Square. To delve into its tawdry history is to read nearly countless stories of attempts to rid it of rats, pigeons and blackbirds. But I won't get derailed into all of that today. The cannon in Nuestro Pueblo (which I'll call "The Last Argument of Kings") was captured at Santiago de Cuba and given to Los Angeles by Maj. Gen. William R. Shafter on Thanksgiving Day, 1899. This is how The Times depicted "The Last Argument of Kings" cannon on Dec. 1, 1899. Although the artwork is unsigned, I would guess that it might have been done by Ted Gale, staff artist and cartoonist. And this is Shafter's presentation speech: According to a 1947 story, "The Last Argument of Kings" was placed at the northeast corner of the park, 5th and Hill streets. After World War II, Pershing Square was excavated to create underground parking and the mature landscaping and fountain were removed. Evidently "The Last Argument of Kings" was considered incompatible with the new landscaping and moved to Travel Town, where it was photographed for a Jan. 3, 1961, Times feature. Bonus fact: Victory House was built at the park during World War II as a USO facility for servicemen.   But one cannon wasn't enough for Pershing Square. On the Fourth of July, 1935, a second cannon was placed in the park, at the southwest corner, Olive and 6th Street. The "Old Ironsides" cannon remains in Pershing Square.

In the meantime, "The Last Argument of Kings" has become a plaything for children at Travel Town, as photographed by Boris Yaro, Dec. 11, 1975.  I may have to make a field trip to Travel Town and see if it's still there.

Coming Attractions -- The Legacy of Allensworth

An upcoming conference will focus on the legacy of Allensworth, a town financed and governed by African Americans founded by Col. Allen Allensworth. The conference is being promoted as the first in the Hidden Stories Series of the California State Parks Foundation. The conference will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on May 4 at Doheny Memorial Library. Registration is $60 and includes meals, an evening reception and membership in the parks foundation. Sessions include African Americans in the Gold Rush; recreation and beach culture during the days of segregation; a keynote speech by former Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, the former mayor of San Francisco; the history of African Americans in San Diego; and workshops on ways to highlight African Americans' contribution to California. Information is here >>> Register here>>>

Found on EBay -- Long Beach Plunge

This postcard of the Plunge in Long Beach has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $2.

At left, an orchestra provides music for Ladies' Day at the Plunge in Long Beach. Above, ladies, please cover up!

Found on EBay -- St. James Park

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This postcard of St. James Park has been listed on EBay. Bidding starts at $8.99. St. James Park is in the Adams district near Scarff Street. According to The Times (Jan. 5 1896), St. James Park was established in 1892 and cost $6,049.40 ($137,939.94 USD 2007) for three-quarters of an acre.

Changeling stories -- Part I

Police Capt. Jones and LAPD officers search the lake in Lincoln Park for the body of Walter Collins, Los Angeles Times, April 6, 1928.

The boy claiming to be Walter Collins poses with Christine Collins, Aug. 18, 1928 Several regular readers have asked to see the original stories that formed the basis of the current movie "Changeling," written by J. Michael Straczynski and directed by Clint Eastwood. The movie's website is here>>> Alas, The Times published far more stories than I can ever upload to the Daily Mirror. Over the next few days, I'll try to post a few of them just to give a sample of the coverage--and of course the competition also filed stories that would only be available on microfilm at the Los Angeles Public Library. The Times stories are available from The Times archive or via ProQuest from the Los Angeles Public Library (you will need a library card to sign in).  Photo of the real Walter Collins A Glendale service station attendant says he saw the missing boy in the back of a car. Police suspect kidnapping is retaliation against boy's father, a Folsom inmate. Missing boy found in DeKalb, Ill., refuses to identify "daddy." "I do not think that is my boy," Christine Collins says. Police insist boy is Walter Collins despite statements that he was killed. Mother returns boy, saying he's not her son. Handwriting expert says boy is not Walter Collins.

Movie star kisses 1-millionth visitor to park, October 20, 1958

Pacific Ocean Park, 1958 - 1975